With the dwindling supplies of fossil fuels, attention is being increasingly focussed on solar energy as a viable alternative energy source to be harnessed in various commercial and domestic settings. Of particular interest are the methods and apparatus devised for the thermal dissociation of molecules into their constituent parts and the recovery thereof. Although such systems are applicable to a myriad of processes, such as hydrogen production from methane, and the dissociation of pollutants or hazardous compounds, a preferred usage lies in the production of hydrogen and oxygen from water.
In all attempts to harness solar energy, storage of the energy for use during periods of insufficient sunlight or during nighttime posses a problem. Partial solutions to the problem have included heating various masses to increase their thermal energy content by temperature increases, phase changes or reversible chemical reactions. Such systems, however, suffer numerous drawbacks due to the low quality heat involved, the means of energy retrieval, and system degradation. On the other hand, if water is decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, a valuable clean burning fuel is produced overcomes many problems of the prior art.
This approach has been advocated by various contributors in the field. U.S. Pat No. 4,030,890, issued June 21, 1977, to Richard E. Diggs, for example, teaches using a parabolic reflector to concentrate solar radiation to thermally dissociate steam into hydrogen and oxygen. Separation of the respective components is achieved by passing the components through a spiral housing to separate the heavier components from the lighter components.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,053,576, issued Oct. 11, 1977, to Edward A. Fletcher, also discloses a system for producing and separating hydrogen and oxygen from water. In this system the water is thermally dissociated by concentrated solar energy, and separation is achieved by permitting the hydrogen to preferentially diffuse through the walls of a permeable housing.
Both of the above inventions suffer, however, from numerous defects. The most readily apparent problem which is common to both systems resides in the fact that the water must be contained in a heat-conductive housing upon which the energy is focussed that is capable of withstanding the intense heat required for the thermal dissociation. At temperatures in the range 1800.degree. to 3500.degree. Kelvin, finding suitable materials for gas-tight housing or housing of specific permeability is difficult.
A second common problem results from the lack of means to quickly prevent recombination of the separated components.
The present invention avoids these problems and achieves the desired separation in a unique and novel manner.